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Mail Order Service Totally Unaffected!

Despite the huge fire, which engulfed the Robinsons store on Thursday 19th September, their mail order business is totally unaffected. Orders from both their new catalogue 2002/3 and the website are being processed without any delays. Even store customers are being tempted to make their purchases this way whilst the store is out of action.

The Haydock store at almost 20,000 square feet was the largest equestrian superstore in the UK, but just over five miles away is their Call Centre and Warehouse, which at 74,000 square feet is over three times larger than the store. Stock holding at the warehouse is almost five times the stock value held in the store. Robinsons are still able to answer and take an order from up to 3,000 calls per day. In terms of sending out orders, in less than ten days they could despatch enough orders to equal the value of all the stock that was in the Store.

Marketing Manager Paul Bentham explained, "at this stage, it's too early to say what we will do, but it's safe to assume that we'll be back with a new store that will be better than any other equestrian store in the world. Despite all the upheaval, we see this as an opportunity to create something better than anything anyone has seen before. We now have the chance to put all our experience of 20 years that we had in that building into a Store, which meets the demands of today's customers. Nobody is better able than us to make this happen. Our Store may have been the biggest in the UK, but its success was achieved in an old building with far fewer facilities available to us than we would have liked."

If you have any queries about the store, Robinsons shop telephone number 01942 712555 has been diverted to their Rainford headquarters where their Store staff can take your call. If you would like to place an order via our Mail Order service, simply call 01744 885555 or visit our website at www.robinsons-uk.com

Jim Bentham, Managing Director of Robinsons at the site of the Haydock store.


Further Information:
Despite the huge fire, which engulfed the Robinsons Store on Thursday 19th September, our Mail Order Service is continuing to operate as usual. Our Call Centre and main warehouse are actually located five miles away from where the Store used to be and at 74,000 square feet, we have ample facilities to enable us to take up to 3,000 orders each day! Even with the temporary loss of our Store, we are still the UK's largest equestrian provider with huge stock levels. We are very proud to be able to say that for the eighth year running our Mail Order Service has once again been voted No 1, by the readers of 'Your Horse' magazine. Plus, at 220-pages, our 2002/03 Annual Catalogue is our biggest ever and is jam-packed with some superb products for your horse, your home, your stable...and you! As well as all the old favourites, there are plenty of new innovative ideas, great new brands and of course the usual amazing prices.

Many of our existing Store customers are now purchasing their equestrian goods from us, though our Mail Order service and from the comments we've received so far, the majority are enjoying the experience of shopping from the comfort of their own home!
MAIL ORDER: 01744 885555

Temporary Feedstore opening 11th October

Within fourteen days of our Retail Store burning to the ground, we have located temporary premises within two miles of our old location and filled it with horse feed, bedding and supplements. We've been inundated with calls from regular Feedstore customers enquiring as to when they'd be able to purchase their horse feed and shavings from us again. Many stated that they were finding it extremely difficult to locate an alternative local supplier who offered the same wide range of low-priced feed. So, we're very please to announce the opening of our temporary Feedstore at 10am, on Friday 11th October. We'll be offering the same ranges, at the
same prices with the same efficient service - the only difference is that this temporary Feedstore is even bigger than our previous one!

News updates at your fingertips!

Make sure you keep up to date with the latest news about our plans for the Retail Store.
We'll be keeping everyone informed on a regular basis via our website and the equestrian media.
Plus, when you visit www.robinsons-uk.com you'll discover a whole new world of equestrian online shopping. You'll find all the products from our catalogues, plus many more available to purchase through our website.
Browsing through you'll also find general information about the history of Robinsons, the services we offer, job vacancies, 'web only' offers, a constantly updated 'links' page and a step-by-step guide on how to place an order online.

Latest developments

Although it was a devastating shock to watch over twenty years of work burn to the ground, Jim Bentham, Managing Director of Robinsons is very excited about future plans for a new Robinsons Retail Store.
Like the rest of the Robinsons Team he now sees this as a unique opportunity to create something better than before.

"Our Store may have been the largest in the UK, but its success was achieved in an old building, with far fewer facilities available than we would have liked. Now that these restrictions have been removed, we have the chance to put all our twenty years experience into a new Store, one which meets the demands of today's customers." Jim Bentham explained.
"We'd love to be able to announce our plans, but for now we are investgating every option. Rest assured that as soon as we know, we will keep you updated every step of the way."
Make sure you check out our website for regular updates, as well as the equestrian media. We may not be able to tell you anything substantial yet, but we do promise that the new store will rival any and will be a new experience in equestrian shopping.

Huge support received following Retail Store fire

We have been inundated with messages of support ever since the fire at our Store on Thursday 19th September.
The very next day we received messages of goodwill from many of our UK suppliers, mail order customers and even competitors. As word has spread, messages have come from several of our foreign suppliers as well as other large equestrian Mail Order companies in Germany, South Africa and the USA. Roly Owers of the ILPH, Tanya Larrigan, who would have appeared at this year's 'kids@robbies' Store promotion and all our friends at The Pony Club have also passed on their thoughts. It has been great to hear from everyone and we have been touched by their sincerity. Our customers themselves have also shown an incredible amount of support. Despite the fact that their shopping has now been made more inconvenient by the loss of the shop, many of them have given us a huge boost with their good wishes. We hope to repay their faith by providing them with an even better store as soon as we can. The whole team at Robinsons are full of drive and determination to face new challenges. Most of the Retail Store staff are now working at either our 74,000 square foot headquarters, or our temporary Feedstore.
We have total confidence that Robinsons will emerge from this a much bigger force than before and with a new Retail Store to challenge competitors and astound customers.

Frequently asked questions
Robinsons have the answers to your most popular enquiries

What happened?
On the evening of Thursday 19th September, the Robinsons Retail Store building was completely destroyed by a fire. The alarm was raised at 7.30pm with around one hundred customers and ten staff in the Store. Everyone was evacuated in an orderly fashion and no one sustained any injuries.

Can I still buy my equestrian goods from Robinsons?
Yes! The fire at our Retail store has not affected our Mail Order service and shop customers are invited to use this service for future purchases of equestrian goods. You can also order online, via our fully secure website.When will the new store be opened?At the moment it's too early to say when or indeed where our new store will be located. We're currently exploring several options and will of course keep everyone updated as often as we can. It is safe to assume though that we will be back with a Store which is even bigger and better than the one we had.

My rugs/clippers were at the Store being repaired/cleaned/sharpened - what do I do now?
Please send in a copy of the receipt that you were given when you dropped your goods off at the Store. This needs to be sent for the attention of the Retail Store Manager at the address at the bottom of this page. We will then try to sort out replacements for you as quickly as possible. We recommend that you photocopy the receipts before you send them and ensure that you include your full name, address and telephone number.

What about Group Visits and other Store promotions?
We regret that any Group Visits and planned promotions for the remainder of 2002 have had to be cancelled. Please contact us in the New Year for the latest details.How can I get hold of a copy of your 2002/03 Annual Catalogue?It's easy, you can either phone our dedicated catalogue request line which is 01744 887002, or you can order a copy online via our website. If you have any other questions or queries regarding anything to do with our Retail Store, please don't hesitate to contact our Store Supervisors on 01942 712555.

Website: www.robinsons-uk.com

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